According to media reports, police in the United Arab Emirates have given a surprising explanation for a dramatic fall in traffic accidents last week: drivers' BlackBerrys weren't working.It's claimed that last week's worldwide BlackBerry outage, which frustrated business people around the world who were unable to communicate with their colleagues, had one positive result - less texting and reading of emails by people who should have been concentrating on driving instead.Road traffic accidents in Abu Dhabi are said to have dropped by 40%, and there was a 20% reduction in Dubai in the past week.Read full story from Sophos Naked Security here

If you need any convincing, here's a shocking video that was made to highlight the danger. Please note: the video is graphic and may be upsetting to some people.

Whether you believe the police are right that the BlackBerry outage contributed to the reduction in road traffic accidents…

UN Secretary General's speech to the General Assembly"We must invest in people — particularly in education and women’s and children’s health. Development is not sustainable unless it is equitable and serves all people."- Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary General Ban urges global leaders gathered at UN to 'shape the world of tomorrow' Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon addresses world leaders gathering for the high-level debate of the 66th General Assembly Session Read full speech here --> http://www.un.org/apps/news/infocus/sgspeeches/statments_full.asp?statID=1310

Ten years ago on this day, I was attending radio communication training in our office in Islamabad, Pakistan. I remember a colleague coming into the room and whispering to some of us that there was a terrible accident in New York. A plane has crashed into the Wall Trade Center.

While still trying to digest this info - imagining how a plane could be flying at such low altitude in the first place, we received another notification a few moments later, that a second plane has crashed into the other tower. It doesn't look like an accident anymore! This was when it became clear that something terrible has happened that will forever change the way we live, the way we travel, the way we come to view and understand terrorism.

A few hours later, as it became apparent that this was a terrorist attack, we were asked to return to our hotels and wait for further instructions. What struck me the most was that on walking back to my hotel with some colleagues, we observed people glued to TV sets on …

I, like a lot of other people, like to focus on the "big picture". But, one must never forget that the "big picture" is made up of several "small pictures". If the quality of the "small pictures" are blurred, so too will be the quality of the "big picture". Attention is to detail is what sets apart the final results.

I just made it into Google+, considered to be the Facebook rival. Wow!

So far, it has been a very protected system - by invitation only. Still not available in Google Apps and for Google Apps accounts. Quite frustrating on that front. I was lucky to get an invitation from a colleague.

But, is it a good thing to keep it so protected and keep potential users longing for the system? I wonder if that's a productive way of introducing a system for which success will depend on numbers at the end of the day. Google should learn from the past. Its search engine became popular and dominant simply because it was easily accessible to everyone - no restrictions. I feel that the same principle should apply to a social networking system.

I'll try it out for a couple of days and see whether it was worth the wait and convincing enough to switch from good ole FaceB.

Radiation from cell phones can possibly cause cancer, according to the World Health Organization. The agency now lists mobile phone use in the same “carcinogenic hazard” category as lead, engine exhaust and chloroform. As of 2010, there were more than 303 million subscribers to cell phone service in the United States, according to the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association. Globally, the number of cell phone subscriptions is estimated to be 5 billion.A team of 31 scientists from 14 countries, including the United States, made the decision after reviewing peer-reviewed studies on cell phone safety. The team found enough evidence to categorize personal exposure as “possibly carcinogenic to humans.”Cell phones emit radiofrequency energy. Concerns have been raised that this energy from cell phones may pose a cancer risk to users. The tissues next to where the phone is held absorb this energy. What that means is they found some evidence of increase in glioma an…

Save Lives in Drought-Stricken East Africa The Horn of Africa crisis has become the very highest global humanitarian priority. With famine in southern Somalia and more than 11 million people in need of food assistance in the region, countless lives hang in the balance.Your emergency donation allows us to reach more people on the edge of survival – especially women and children. Your support could not be more critical at this time. We urgently need more resources to expand our emergency relief operation.Make a lifesaving donation today by filling out the form to your right. Any donation made through PayPal Checkout (below) will be directed to where it is needed most. Please note that monthly gifts may be directed to where most needed if funding needs shift in the future.Read more --> https://www.wfp.org/donate/hoa_banners

It’s true that most workers spend more time with their colleagues than they do with their families. And with so many survivors of economic-downturn-induced layoffs handling the duties once carried out by two or even three people, family time is even more limited. Unfortunately, parents overcompensating for their absence are spoiling their kids, says Lori Gottlieb, a therapist and author of an article, “How to Land Your Kid in Therapy.” Child psychologist Dan Kindlon concurs. “We don’t set limits, because we want our kids to like us at every moment, even though it’s better for them if sometimes they can’t stand us,” says Kindlon.

Do Busy Schedules Mean Lax Parenting?[extract from the Wall Street Journal] By John J. Edwards IIIEverett CollectionA scene from “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.” Are accommodating-to-a-fault parents raising a generation of over-entitled shrinking violets? Are our busy schedules causing us to coddle our kids during the limit…

Annan warns hunger could become permanent disasterLand size of France bought by hedge funds in 2009, says chairman of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in AfricaKofi Annan addresses the 37th FAO Conference, 25 June 2011. 25 June 2011, Rome - Kofi Annan, chairman of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, has warned that the current food security crisis, with almost one billion people hungry, could turn into a permanent disaster, endangering millions of lives as well as international cooperation.

"Along with tackling the linked problem of climate change, delivering global food and nutrition security is the challenge of our time,” he said.

Senegal's President Abdoulaye Wade has dropped some of his planned constitutional changes, officials say. He no longer wants to reduce the proportion of votes needed to win a presidential election, and avoid a run-off, from more than 50% to 25%.
As MPs met in the capital, Dakar, to discuss the planned amendments, riot police used tear gas and water cannon against demonstrators outside.

Read full story from the BBC here --> http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-13887613

There was a farmer who collected horses; he only needed one more breed to complete his collection.
One day, he found out that his neighbor had the particular horse breed he needed. So, he constantly bothered his neighbor until he sold it to him.
A month later, the horse became ill and he called the veterinarian, who said:
- Well, your horse has a virus. He must take this medicine for three days. I'll come back on the third day and if he's not better, we're going to have to put him down.

Nearby, the pig listened closely to their conversation.

The next day, they gave him the medicine and left.
The pig approached the horse and said:
- Be strong, my friend. Get up or else they're going to put you to sleep!

On the second day, they gave him the medicine and left.
The pig came back and said: Come on buddy, get up or else you're going to die! Come on, I'll help you get up. Let's go! One, two, three...
On the third day, they came to give …

Mariama Marissa Bah (Grade 8), has graduated from Middle School to High School at the ISD, at a ceremony held today 14 June.Bella Bah (Grade 6) wins the President's Award for Education Excellence, in recognition of Outstanding Academic Excellence.
We are very proud of you both and thank God for everything.